“The Walking Dead”
Synopsis: The war to live is no longer being fought solely against the dead. With a five minute long trailer featuring solemn stares, guns ready to fire, and Jeffrey Dean Morgan acting as mouth piece for creators that we are about to “shit our pants”, season eight of the AMC ratings juggernaut makes a return that is anything but quiet. Rick (Andrew Lincoln) will bring the fight to Negan (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) and the Saviors.
What You Need To Know: The TV reworking of “The Walking Dead” has been known to veer in different directions from the comics. Whether it will remain true to where the story is headed, we will leave to the discretion of major fans. The season will, as per the writers’ word, delve more into Negan’s backstory.
Release Date: Season 8 premieres on October 22nd on AMC.
“Stranger Things”
Synopsis: In the fall of 1984, a year after rescuing Will Byers from The Upside Down, strange things continue to happen in Hawkins, Indiana. A greater threat looms out of site over the town. What stranger things lurk in the darkness of other dimensions? And how can a group of kids, a stubborn cop, and a concerned mother stop it?
What You Need To Know: It is difficult to speculate on a show that has been so secretive. What we do know is The Duffer Brothers will continue the trend of 80s inspired science fiction and horror, while adding new characters including “The Goonies” alum Sean Astin into the mix. One of our favorite shows, we’re hoping The Duffer Brothers didn’t deliver a one-hit-wonder with the first season. Nevertheless, we can’t wait to head back into The Upside Down.
Release Date:Season 2 returns October 27th on Netflix.
“The Punisher”
Synopsis: After the murder of his family, Frank Castle becomes a vigilante known as “The Punisher,” who aims to fight crime by any means necessary.
What You Need To Know: Jon Bernthal’s (“Show Me a Hero,” “Baby Driver”) Frank Castle, aka. The Punisher, was by far and away the best part of the second season of “Daredevil.” No wonder Netflix and Marvel made the smart, logical decision to order a spinoff focusing on the fan favorite murderous vigilante. The series will certainly raise the bar for violence and gore in a Marvel small screen fare. Going by the visceral content of the trailers alone, “The Punisher” is set to make the “darker and grittier” content of Netflix’s MCU series look like Sesame Street. Bernthal’s visceral performance, joined Ben Barnes (“Westworld”), Ebon Moss-Bachrach (“Girls,” “The Last Ship”) and Amber Rose Revah (“Indian Summer”) makes one hopeful that “The Punisher” will be a hit amongst Netflix’s hit-or-miss Marvel shows
Release Date: TBD October on Netflix.
“Ten Days in the Valley”
Synopsis: An overworked television producer and single mother’s personal and professional worlds implode when her daughter goes missing in the middle of the night.
What You Need To Know: As exciting as it is to see Kyra Sedgwick (“The Closer”) back on television, one can’t shake the feeling the ABC miniseries, created by Tassie Cameron (“Rookie Blue,” “Degrassi: The Next Generation”), is a Lifetime production that somehow swindled its way to network television. It certainly doesn’t help that the series is leaning hard into the hoary, tired “a child is kidnapped, the mother’s life unravels” trope. Hopefully Sedgwick’s involvement means the script is of a decent quality.
Release Date: Now airing on ABC.